The oldest living World War II veteran received a new uniform ahead of Veterans Day.
Lawrence Brooks, a 112-year-old Louisiana native, was presented with another uniform and his old unit’s badge when he was in a New Orleans Veteran Affairs hospital earlier this month, according to Black Enterprise.
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He lost his original uniform and ribbons during Hurricane Katrina 16 years ago.
“This is it,” said Brooks, according to Military.com. “This is the uniform I wore in Australia.”
He was discharged from the hospital roughly a week before Veterans Day.
Brooks, who never rose above the rank of private first class, served in the 91st Engineer Battalion, a predominantly African American unit, in Australia, Papua, and the Philippines.
He was drafted and entered the army in 1940. He participated in the Louisiana Maneuvers, in which 400,000 soldiers traveled to the state for readiness exercises following Germany’s invasion of Poland and France. Brooks served his obligatory year in the Army and was discharged, though he decided to reenlist after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
“There was no question,” he explained. “They just came right back and got me again.”
The only possession he still has from his time in the service is a framed photograph taken in 1943. There are inconsistencies with the photo, like the stripes on his sleeve, though he said he was wearing someone’s jacket.
“That was the officer’s coat,” said Brooks. “The officers’ club had a big party. I had to wear the officer’s uniform to get in the club. They wanted to sneak me in.”
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His daughter, Vanessa Brooks, has been his primary caregiver for 13 years, and she recently took an indefinite leave from her job to care for him full-time, according to the Associated Press.
“I just want him to have a good life,” Vanessa said. “He worked hard. He took care of our family. Now, I take care of him.”
